No offense to my American buds over here, but geez, can I go home already? I’m entering week three in the States and I maxed out after about one and a half weeks. I just don’t have the patience for this lifestyle anymore– suburbia madness (this NoVA, after all) that’s obsessed with cars, consumption, and waste. I remember how John and I used to spend every weekend running around town doing shopping errands and cleaning. We probably wasted half our lives buying things we thought we needed, accumulating piles of junk. My poor parents– their basement has become a storage center for our things. Fortunately, we downsized some. I think after we move back, we’re gonna have a big yard sale. Thinking about all the clutter just gives me a headache. I never put two and two together before– but a smaller living space helps keep the goods to a minimum. We’ll see. I think that’ll be the biggest challenge of living here.

So what the hell have I been doing here with all my free time? Heh, heh. I’ve actually had quite a whirlwind tour over here. I’ve seen the parentals, family, former co-workers, John’s colleagues, college friends– gone to Baltimore, NYC, Raleigh. Yeah, got the Amtrak experience (excellent– the train is soooo nice), and also flew on Independence Air on its second day of operation. I’m flying out to the west coast soon, this time on JetBlue. Gotta rack up those frequent flyer miles you know, from as many different airlines as possible. That’ll do a lot of good. 🙁

Outside of catching up with friends, John and I got a lot of logistical stuff done, the most important of which involves our townhouse in Reston. The property management company was a disaster– no statements, no response to my calls, no response to the tenant’s calls. So I spent about a week trying to obtain files on my property (the lease, listing agreement, etc.). Propman fed me a barrel of crap information, saying my tenants were Section 8 (eligible for federal subsidies) then were not Section 8, that maintenance issues would be addressed, that I would get a copy of the lease. The Larsens, whom I met and are thankfully very nice people, also had a hell of a time dealing with Propman. Apparently, the sink had been leaking at move-in and it took a week to get it fixed. I hate incompetence. Needless to say, I terminated our relationship and hired on another management company, one that is also computer savvy. I’ll keep my fingers crossed.

In other news, I’ve done more reading in the last week than I’ve probably done in the entire last year. I read the spring issue of Ms. Magazine— it was like an issue specially made for me, with really excellent pieces on pornography, childlessness (by choice), and the global pursuit for white skin. I am also almost finished reading Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser. Such an eye-opener. I’m renewing my vows not to eat meat. In addition, I’m going to try and cut out fast food. No more McDonald’s apple pies and french fries and ice cream cones. The truth hurts, but in the end, it’s only food. I’m now looking into a macrobiotic diet, one that is generally vegetarian and consists largely of whole grains, cereals, and cooked vegetables. It doesn’t sound much different from what I was eating, especially in Shanghai where cheese and chocolates are expensive. I dunno. I have to read more about it. Anyway, I think I’m finally ready to just adopt a new program for myself. I need to be healthier.